Washing machine mechanism



Feb. 22, 1944. GREGG 2,342,269

WASHING MACHINE MECHANISM Filed July 17, 1939 4 Sheets-Sheet l l 1 3 13 I R 2] 6 46 I am /5 19 16 f 35! J l l7 4/ m a-l L9 i 16 1 w 5 H 23 f5 f2 Feb. 22, 1944. GREGG 2,342,269

WASHING MACHINE MECHANISM Filed July 17, 1939 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 i 26 five/@ 07": x i xJ/ og/c/feyy I 546% Feb. 22, 1944. J GREGG 2,342,269

WASHING MACHINE MECHANISM Filed July 17, 1959 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 'Feb. 22, 1944. J. F. GREGG WASHING MACHINE MECHANISM Filed July 17, 1939 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 fivezz z orx Patented Feb. 22, 1944 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WASHING MACHINE MECHANISM Jonas Floyd Gregg, Mishawaka, Ind.

Application July 17, 1939, Serial No. 284,827

6 Claims.

This invention relates to domestic washing machines and particularly to a novel mechanism for driving the agitator of submerged agitator type machines or similar washing means.

The particular object of the invention is to provide a drive mechanism of very compact form in order to permit it being mounted on the central agitator post of the machine.

Another object is to provide a compact washing machine mechanism that can be mounted concentric with and between the drive motor and the agitator post of a domestic washing machine for driving any desired washing mechanism.

Other objects and benefits will be disclosed in the following descriptions and drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a cross sectional elevation view of a domestic washing machine embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged elevation view of the mechanism gear case, particularly to show the method of mounting it on the agitator post as shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 3 is a companion illustration to Fig. 2, be-

ing an enlarged broken cross sectional view of the top of the agitator post showing the method by which the gear case is mounted thereon;

Fig. 4 is a further enlarged cross sectional elevation view of the drive mechanism mounted on the agitator post and connected to the stem of the agitator;

Fig. 5 is a plan sectional view oi the gear case mechanism as it appears on the section lines 5-! of Fig.

Fig. 6 is a plan sectional view of the mechanism as it appears on the section lines 6-6 of Fig. 4 and showing certain movement of the mechanism as will later be described;

Fig. 'I is a cross sectional plan view of the mechanism as it appears on the section lines 1-1 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 8 is a sectional elevation view of the mechanism as it appears on the section lines 8-8 of Fig. '7; and

Fig. 9 is a sectional elevation view showing an optional mounting of my gear case between and concentric with the electric motor and the agitator post.

Now referring to Fig. l, I show a conventional washing machine structure embodying my invention in which the washer tub I 0 is mounted on a base ring II and supported on legs 12 in a conventional manner. A conventional wringer support post I: is mounted from the base ring and supports a wringer and wringer head It in a conventional manner. An electric motor I! is vertically mounted from the agitator post 21 by means of extension lugs it, the cross member l1, and spacer blocks l8, asis well illustrated in Fig. 1. The main drive from the motor I5 to the gear case mechanism is through the vertical motor shaft as shown. However, to drive the wringer I employed a conventional gear reduction drive mounted in a gear case'l9 and driven from the motor shaft by the belt and pull y transmission 20.

In the present embodiment of my invention I show a conventional agitator structure 2! having a central post portion 22. However, it will be understood that I do not desire .to be confined-to a conventional agitator washing structure because my gear case may be employed to drive various washing means in a similar manner as that described for the agitator.

A vertically extending motor shaft is connected to the drive shaft 28 by means of a flexible coupling 29 and extends upward through the agitator post, as well illustrated in Fig. 4.

My gear case as assembled is clearly shown in Fig. 4. I employ a gear case body 23 which is supported on a stem member 24 having a. spiral thread 25. This spiral thread has a mating grpove 26 in the top of the agitator post 21. It will be appreciated that the gear case may be assembled on the agitator post by merely screwing the stem 24 on the top of the post by means of the thread 25 and the mating groove 28. The torque induced by the drive is arranged to screw the gear case 23 firmly on the post 21 and thus the gear case is maintained in firm relationship with the post 21.

Now referring to Figs. 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8, and at the outset particularly to Fig. 4, the drive shaft 28 is supported in the bearing 30 and is sealed at its top by a conventional spring leather seal 32.

Tang members 3| emerging from the top of the drive shaft drive the disk crank mmber, consisting of a central shaft 33, the disk 34, and the eccentric pin 35, by means of the pin 33' as shown. The crank is supported in the bearing 36 and is sealed at its bottom by a seal washer 31, the purpose of this seal washer being to retain the necessary lubricant within the gear case as will be well understood.

0n the eccentric pin 35 is mounted a spur pinion 38 having a self-lubricating bearing 36, as shown. It will be appreciated that upon rotation of the shaft 28, the crank disk members 33, 34, I! will be rotated and the spur pmion 38 carried by the pin 35 will revolve while meshing with the internal gear members 39 and 4|. The internal gear 39 is aflixed to the gear case 23 by means of the fiat head screws 40 as shown. However, the internal gear 4| is not so fixed and, therefore, is free to rotate as driven by the spur gear 38 which meshes with both the internal gears 39 and 4|.

Now I arrange the gear 4| to have one less internal tooth than the fixed gear 39. In gears of this diameter the variation of one tooth as above required, wil1 permit a proper meshing of these teeth with the spur gear 38 but as is well understood in the art, the variation of one tooth between the fixed internal gear 39 and the rotating internal gear 4| will have the effect of rotating the gear 4|, one tooth for every revolution of the spur gear 38 about the axis of crank disk 33. This method of attaining speed reduction is more or less conventional and will be well understood by those skilled in the art. Suflice it to say that I effect a speed reduction of approximately the same ratio as the number of teeth in the internal gear 39. For instance, if there were 38 teeth in the internal gear 4|, I would immediately effect a speed reduction in the ratio of 38 to 1.

Afiixed to the internal gear 4| is a crank disk 42 having an eccentric crank pin 42' integral therewith. This crank pin effects oscillation of the segment gear 45 by means of the link 44 and the pin 46. This movement is well illustrated in Fig. 6 where I show in dotted outline the extreme movement of the segment gear 45.

Thesegment gear 45 is pivotally mounted to the cover plate 41 by means of the pivot pin 49 which is riveted to the cover plate 41 held in the top of the gear case 23 by the fiat head screws 48.

Mating with the internal segment gear 45 is a segment pinion 50 which is fixed into the top of the agitator stem 22 by means of the key and the screw 52. It will be appreciated that when the segment internal gear 45 is oscillated as described, the mating internal pinion 50 will be in turn oscillated, and this pinion being fixed to the agitator stem 22 will effect similar oscillatory movement to the agitator 2|.

Now referring to Fig. 9, I show an optional arrangement whereby I mount my gear case exterior of the machine concentric with and [between the drive motor and the agitator post. To do this I mount a stamped bracket 53 exterior of the tub and attached to the agitator post 21 by means of cap screws 21. turn supports another stamped bracket 55 which connects the brackets 53-55 and the motor l5 by means of the fiat head screws 56 and the rubber grommet mounting 51. In place of the top of the agitator post 21 I use a substitute casting 54 which is attached to the bracket 55 by the bolts 58. Instead of connecting my gear case directly to the agitator stem 22 as in my former structure, I employ an agitator drive shaft 59 which is connected by a splined coupling 60 to a revised extension 50' of my former member 50. This re-arrangement of the gear case will be readily understood, and it will be appreciated that by this arrangement I provide means whereby the gear case is mounted exterior of the tub concentric and between the motor I5 and the agitator post 21.

Although in the foregoing I have described how my gear case effects oscillatory movement to a conventional agitator, it will be appreciated that in a similar way I could efiect oscillatory movement to any desired form of washing mechanism.

This bracket 53 in nism driven by the rotating gear including a.

Similarly, by leaving out the oscillating segment gear mechanism and by connecting the stem 22 directly to my member 42, a slow continuous rotating movement could be transmitted to a stem member similar to 22.

From the above description it will be appreciated that I effect the transmission of power from an external motor to a small compact gear cas located in a central post within the washer .tub or concentric with the motor and the agitator post exterior of the tub. It further will be appreciated that by this compact mechanism I am able to mount a simple wringer gear case in the skirt of the machine and drive it conveniently by a belt and pulley transmission.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

I claim:

1. In an enclosed gear case; a power in-put shaft adapted for direct connection to a power motor; an eccentric pin in the in-put shaft; a spur gear pinion on the eccentric pin; dual internal gears concentric with the in-put shaft co-actively mounted with the pinion, one fixed to the gear case and the other rotatively mounted, the rotating internal gear having less teeth than the fixed gear; oscillating motion mechacoacting segment gear and pinion; said oscillating mechanism driving an oscillating out-put shaft extending from the opposite end of the gear case from the in-put shaft.

2. In an enclosed gear case; a power in put shaft adapted for direct connection to a power motor; an eccentric pin in the in-put shaft; a spur gear pinion on the eccentric pin; dual internal gears concentric with the in-put shaft co-actively mounted with the pinion, one fixed to the gear case and the other rotatively mounted, the rotating internal gear having less teeth than the fixed gear, the arrangement providing a gear reduction in excess of 20 to 1; oscillating motion mechanism driven by the rotating gear including a coacting segment gear and pinion; said oscillating mechanism driving an oscillating out-put shaft extending from the end of the gear case concentric with the in-put shaft.

3. In an enclosed gear case, a power in-put shaft adapted for direct connection to a power motor, dual planetary speed reduction mechanism attached to said shaft, low speed oscillating motion mechanism including a coacting segment gear and pinion driven by said speed reduction mechanism, and an out-put oscillating shaft driven by said segment gear and pinion extending from the opposite end of the gear case from the drive end of the in-put shaft.

4. In an enclosed gear case, a power in-put shaft adapted for direct connection to a power motor, dual planetary speed reduction mechanism driven by said shaft, slow speed oscillating motion mechanism including a coacting segment gear and pinion driven by said speed reduction mechanism, and an out-put oscillating shaft driven by said segment gear and pinion extending from the opposite end of the gear case from the in-put shaft, and concentric withsaid shaft.

5. In an enclosed gear case, adapted to drive an agitator of a domestic washing machine, a power in-put shaft adapted for direct connection to a power motor, dual planetary speed reduction mechanism driven by said shaft, oscillating motion mechanism including a coaZzting segment gear and pinion driven by said speed reduction mechanism, and a slow speed out-put oscillating shaft driven by said segment gear and pinion extending from the opposite end of the gear case from the drive end of the in-put shaft,

the proportion and arrangement of the parts being adapted by speed and oscillating arc to drive a washing machine agitator.

6. In a Washing machine gear case for oscillating an agitator at slow speed by a high speed rotating in-put power shaft adapted for direct connection to a power motor, having an eccentric pin in the in-put shaft, a spur gear pinion on the eccentric pin, dual internal gears concentric with the in-put shaft co-actively mounted with the pinion, one fixed to the gear case and the other rotatively mounted, the rotating internal gear having less teeth than the fixed gear; the oscillating motion mechanism in combination, an oscillating pinion attached to the agitator rotatably mounted in the out-put end of the gear case, a pivot pin mounted in the same end and extending within the gear case, a segment gear pivotally mounted on the pivot pin in coacting relationship with the pinion, and a crank drive 10 pin connected to the rotating gear for oscillating the segment gear.

J. FLOYD GREGG. 

